Who's Crying Now, Ex-Husband?

Chapter 562 The bedroom door rattled on its hinges, but Adrian's furious shouts were louder still.

"Mom!" "Why didn't you tell me?" Mila's fingers tightened around the fabric of Forrest's shirt as Adrian's voice rang through the hall. She pressed her lips together, half her face turned into the shadows.

This engagement had happened so suddenly. She hadn't told her son a thing. She'd simply made the decision herself.

It was her own life of course Adrian's opinion mattered, but it couldn't be the only thing that decided her future. Still... she hadn't figured out how to explain it to him.

Now that he knew, there was no point hiding. Sooner or later, she'd have to face this.

She exhaled quietly and started to push herself up, but Forrest caught her damp hand in his own. His voice was gentle above her. "Lethandle it. You take care of yourself." He handed her a glass of peach iced tea.

When she looked at him in surprise, Forrest grinned. "Well, if I'm going to be a father soon, I'd better get used to sorting things out with my son, right?" He had a point.

Mila knew Forrest would be a good father, someone who'd step up when it mattered. But if Adrian never accepted him... that would be difficult. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't fix this alone.

"You've done more than enough. Lettake it from here," Forrest said softly, smoothing a stray lock of hair behind her ear. "I'll go." She nodded, then after a moment's hesitation, reached out and hooked her arm around his neck, pulling him closer. She brushed a quick kiss across his cheek. "A reward?" The faint scent of peaches lingered between them.

Forrest froze, then burst out laughing and gently pinched her cheek. "Trying to brushoff, huh?" The pounding on the door grew more frantic outside-sharp and impatient.

"Go on," Mila urged, giving him a push.

Forrest pinched her cheek once more, dodged her swat with a smile, and headed for the door. He opened it and, before Adrian could rush inside, caught him by the arm and led him out into the hallway. The lock clicked behind them.

Adrian glared up at Forrest, defiant. "Get out of my way! I want to see my mom!" "Sure," Forrest replied, smiling. "But first, how about we talk?" By the tForrest cback from the kitchen with two glasses of iced peach tea, Adrian had barricaded himself in his own room, refusing to let Forrest in.

Forrest knocked three times. "Adrian, open up. Running away from problems isn't a great habit, you know." No answer.

He paused, studying the electronic keypad on the door. His tone remained patient. "Adrian, con. We have to talk about this sometime." "I want my mom," Adrian called from inside, voice muffled but stubborn.

Forrest was silent for a moment. "You sure you won't open up? Because I can let myself in." Inside, Adrian ignored him completely. Every door in his mom's house had a digital lock, all networked together. Sure, Forrest might have the code-but he'd locked it from the inside. Even with the code, no one could get in. Not unless they had a masterkey.

He wasn't going to give in to this liar who was tricking his mom! Because of him, she didn't care about him anymore! A second later, the door clicked open.

Adrian's eyes went wide as Forrest stepped inside. He leaped up from the floor, face flushed with anger. "Get out! Did my mom give you the key?!" He was shaking with rage, eyes rimmed red.

"The key?" Forrest glanced at the glowing keypad, brushing his fingers over it.

"Not exactly. Just cracked the lock, that's all. Not too hard." When it cto anything electronic, nothing ever really stood in his way. It was all just lines of code- predictable, logical.

He sidestepped as a Lego block flew through the air, shut the door behind him, and flashed a disarming smile. "Sorry about barging in. But hiding from a conversation isn't the answer." Something had to give, after all. Sometimes, especially with a stubborn kid like Adrian, you had to take the unconventional route.

"Calm down-want siced tea?" Forrest offered, stepping closer and holding out a glass.

Adrian slapped it away. The glass didn't shatter, but pink juice splattered all over Forrest's hand and dripped down his fingers, filling the room with the scent of peaches.

"Get out!" Adrian snapped, eyes hard.

"What a waste." Forrest said with a shrug, setting the empty glass on the table and placing the untouched one beside iHe grabbed a napkin and wiped the sticky juice from his hand. "I made that myself. Your mom loves it, you know." "I'm not falling for your tricks like she does!" Adrian shot back, glaring.

"Tricks?" Forrest's hand paused mid-wipe. He looked down at Adrian, the smile fading from his face, though his voice remained even.

Behind his glasses, his eyes were unreadable. "Got it backwards, Adrian." He crouched down, meeting Adrian's furious gaze. "I've never lied to your mother.

But you? Lying isn't a good look for a kid." Adrian's expression changed, guilt flickering across his face.

Forrest had intended to talk things through calmly. But plans never quite survived first contact with Adrian-this kid never gave him the chance.